The “Me Too” campaign consisted of an immense amount of women who have admitted to being sexually assaulted.
Me Too showed how negative masculinity is perceived in society while the absence of men in the campaign showed how silenced boys and men are and can be regarding being victims and survivors of sexual violence.
The concept of masculinity has been redefined by the values and actions of boys and men who use violence to feel empowered. Dr. Mark Kiselica, professor of psychology and dean of Cabrini University school of humanities and social science, focuses on working with boys and men struggling with mental health and with people who have experienced sexual violence.
“So one of the first steps is to understand that these are boys who have difficulty trusting others, that you have to approach them with a great deal of sensitivity, acknowledge to them that you recognize that this might not be easy to talk about. A great challenge is if these boys have been abused by someone in the community is viewed as a positive role model, their trust in adult and other potential role models is shattered,” Kiselica said.
Through experiencing trust issues with boys and men he has interacted with, Kiselica understands that being a genuine role model in the lives of boys and men can diminish sexual violence. Kiselica exposes the concept of positive masculinity to encourage boys and men to be great role models hopefully avoiding the development of new offenders and to help those who were or are victimize understand that their exist positivity in being masculine.
Kiselica explains that promoting positive masculinity begins with social scientist trying to understand the qualities of men who embrace a “noble notion of masculinity.”
“A man who believes in caring for the next generation, who are respectful towards women, who engage in humanitarian services. These are just a few examples of positive masculinity. Studying what are those qualities in men and how do they pass those on to young boys in the next generation,” Kiselica said.
